Various types of medical instruments utilizing radiofrequency (Rf) energy, laser energy, microwave energy and the like have been developed for delivering thermal energy to tissue, for example to ablate tissue. While such prior art forms of energy delivery work well for some applications, Rf, laser and microwave energy typically cannot cause highly “controlled” and “localized” thermal effects that are desirable in controlled ablation of soft tissue for ablating a controlled depth or for the creation of precise lesions in such tissue. In general, the non-linear or non-uniform characteristics of tissue affect electromagnetic energy distributions in tissue.
What is needed are systems and methods that controllably apply thermal energy in a controlled and localized manner without the lack of control often associated when Rf, laser and microwave energy are applied directly to tissue.